After breaking through for his first-ever NCAA DII individual crown in March, it didn't take long for Ben Haas to add another.

The 2025 NCAA DII Indoor weight throw national champion is now a NCAA DII outdoor champion as well, claiming the national title in the hammer throw on Thursday at the 2025 NCAA DII Outdoor Championships in Pueblo, Colorado.

While Haas entered Thursday's competition as the top seed in the nation in the hammer throw, he had much closer competition than he did in running away with the weight throw title in March. Despite the much tougher battle to bring home the national title, the junior proved to be up to the task. He seized control of the competition on the second throw, with a mark of 65.78 meters that pulled him into the lead for good. 

Although that would end up being far enough to win the title, with his closest competitor in the event finishing with a 65.67, Haas didn't rest on his lead, adding to his advantage in the first throw of finals with a mark of 66.31 meters to sew up the crown.

With the championship, Haas becomes Hillsdale's first two-time men's national champion at the NCAA DII level, and is the first double champion since Jim McHugh won his second NAIA national title in the high jump in 1994. It's a signature accomplishment for an athlete who's quickly building a resume that rates among the greatest track and field athletes in Hillsdale College history, with two titles and five total All-American honors, along with four school records.

Along with Haas' national championship, Hillsdale also had an excellent day on the track, with both of its athletes competing in preliminaries earning a spot in the finals of the 2025 Outdoor Championships.

Junior Ross Kuhn, making his first-ever national meet appearance, ran a gutsy race in the 1,500m run prelims, finishing with the seventh-fastest time overall in qualifying (3:54.03) to earn one of 12 spots in the national championship race on Saturday. All four additional finals qualifiers in the 1,500m run came from Kuhn's heat, and the junior showed great heart down the stretch to outkick opponents and claim one of the four spots up for grabs to keep hopes of an All-American honor alive.

Senior Richie Johnston also will be racing in the 3,000m steeplechase final on Friday night as the veteran Charger took sixth in the first of two preliminary heats in a time of 9:20.31. That time held up for Johnston to make his first-ever appearance in the national championship race of the 3,000m steeplechase in his third national meet appearance in the event.

The excellent first day in Pueblo is just the beginning for the Chargers, who are well set up to add more All-American honors to Haas' big showing in the hammer throw over the next two days. Johnston will be the lone Charger in action on Friday, competing for All-American honors in the 3,000m steeplechase final at 9:30 p.m. ET. That leads into a huge day on Saturday, as Cass Dobrowolski competes for Hillsdale in the high jump at 6:45 p.m. ET, Haas goes for a third national title and sixth All-American honor in the shot put at 7:05 p.m. ET, and Kuhn looks to bring home All-American honors in the 1,500m final at 7:45 p.m. It's going to be an exciting weekend full of possibilities for Hillsdale out in Colorado.